As a chiropractor here in Parker Colorado I see a fair amount of patients suffering from the flu. I am often asked if I recommend the flu shot and so once and for all I will tell all of you patients here in Parker and Douglas county what I recommend this season. The medical community is in unanimous agreement that the secret to fighting the flu is a healthy immune system. Unfortunately you can’t buy a healthy immune system and you can’t pop a pill and get a healthy immune system. A healthy immune system comes about as a result of having a fully functioning nervous system & body.

When Will Flu Season Strike Parker?

The flu season begins in November and is at its height between December and March. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 out of every 5 Americans will get the flu this year. Are you prepared for the flu season?

Chiropractic care may be your answer to a clean bill of health this season. Chiropractic can give your immune system a boost with a spinal adjustment. Let me give you the facts and a recent study about chiropractic and the flu: A study shown in the Journal of Vertebral Subluxation Research in 1997 showed chiropractic care to be effective in treating the flu. Over 2,800 individuals received regular chiropractic care and the result was an average 15% decrease in the incidence of colds and the flu.

According to the World Chiropractic Alliance, spinal adjustments can help your immune system function better. An adjustment corrects what are called vertebral subluxations which can cause interference of the nervous system. When an adjustment is performed, it releases pressure on the nerves and allows more efficient interaction between your body’s nervous system and immune system. When your immune system is healthy it is better prepared to prevent or combat the flu.

Regular chiropractic care is beneficial to the body. Preventing the flu is just one of the many positive side effects of regular chiropractic maintenance. Do you really need a flu shot? Or could great flu-fighting benefits accrue from taking a healthier and more natural approach to fighting the flu? And of course eating right, exercising, and having a healthy body are all important issues in combating the flu as well.

If you would like to learn more about utilizing chiropractic to combat the flu during the upcoming flu seasons, please give me a call. We’re here to help! Also, family plans are available to save you money. We are adjacent to the Parker library off of Parker and Main street you may schedule your appointment by calling 303-841-7121.

There is a fair amount of evidence showing that highly sugary drinks like chocolate milk and pop are not only greatly contributing to childhood obesity but also ADD and other learning disabilities.

So, you can imagine my surprise when recent studies showed unusually high amounts of the poisonous substance arsenic in apple juice kid’s size juice boxes. Back in September Dr. Mehmet Oz, from the very popular Dr. Oz show on TV, aired a show reporting that he had done testing on certain juices and found many of them to be dangerously high in arsenic. The FDA jumped, calling the segment irresponsible and misleading because it did not specify the difference between inorganic arsenic (the harmful kind) and organic arsenic (the harmless kind) and combined the both kinds of arsenic in the study, which in their belief, led to unreliable levels.

Consumer Reports, however, did its own study and their findings back Dr. Oz’s claims up. Out of the 88 samples of apple and grape juice they tested, 10% had levels of arsenic over the 10 parts per billion that the FDA deems to be a safe amount, and 25% of the samples tested showed lead levels above the 5 parts per billion allowed for bottled drinking water. Consumer Report’s tests the arsenic that was found in these juices are inorganic…the dangerous kind. Brands with the questionably dangerous arsenic levels include Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) brand, (Great Value) Walgreens (NYSE:WAG), Welch’s, Apple and Eve (Cranberries Limited, Inc.), and Motts (Dr. Pepper Snapple Group Inc – NYSE:DPS).

Pretty disturbing to know that the FDA has no standards in place when it comes to testing for dangerous substances in our children’s juices. Not to mention we can’t seem to figure out why it is that autism, ADD, and other learning disorders are on the rise. I recommend using organic fruits and juicing them for children as this will not only prevent them sucking down arsenic but also it is much lower in sugar and higher in fiber.

Our chiropractors are happy to provide services to your children for optimal health.

From infants through the teen years many symptoms can be eliminated or reduced from regular trips to your friendly Parker chiropractor.

It is widely documented that many spinal issues found in adults began as early as birth.

The resulting stress and irritation to the nervous system perpetuated by spinal and cranial mis-alignments can be the cause of many newborn health complaints:

colic

colds

sore throats

ear infections

fever

asthma

tonsillitis

allergies

bed-wetting

infections

pains

falls

stomach aches, etc.

In short, the hundred and one ailments children go through as they grow can be effectively treated with Chiropractic care. My young son constantly has a bruise on his forehead from running into something and often is in need of a light, gentle adjustment to correct misalignments.

Chiropractic care is safe and effective for infants, children and teenagers.

Oh come on doctor, how can chiropractic help my ADHD child?

When I tell my patients that chiropractic can greatly benefit their ADHD child, I sometimes get a strange look but it’s true. Consider these facts: In the past decade, prescriptions for Ritalin, a stimulant medication commonly used for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), increased five-fold with 90% of all prescriptions worldwide consumed in the United States. As parents grow leery of the traditional medical approach to ADHD, chiropractors are offering promising results with non-drug treatments that focus on an all-natural approach – ridding children of spinal subluxations, making nutrition and lifestyle changes – that affect brain activity.

Here’s a quote from the American Chiropractic Association about the power of chiropractic in treating ADHD: “Chiropractors offer a non-drug treatment alternative for ADHD patients that targets the underlying problems, not just symptoms. “Motor activity—especially development of the postural muscles—is the baseline function of brain activity. Anything affecting postural muscles will influence brain development. Musculoskeletal imbalance will create imbalance of brain activity, and one part of the brain will develop faster than the other, and that’s what’s happening in ADHD patients,” says Dr. Robert Melillo, a renowned chiropractic neurologist.”

Also a new study was released recently that showed children with behavioral problems are at much greater risk for lower back pain.

Researchers examined 1,000 schoolchildren between the ages of 11-14. They found that those who had behavioral problems, as well as those that repeatedly complained of other symptoms such as headaches and sore throats, were more likely to get lower back pain. (From the April 4, 2003 edition of Pediatrics Magazine.)

If you have a child who has been labeled ADHD, suffers lower back pain, or who seems to exhibit behavioral problems, I hope you give serious consideration to seeking an all-natural non-invasive chiropractic solution. You might be surprised what chiropractic can do for your ADHD child.

If you have any questions please feel free to drop by our clinic adjacent to the Parker library off of Parker and Main street or call us at 303-841-7121.

Dr. Hatch speaks once every month at the Parker library, please feel free to attend a lecture.